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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26538382">Mother Dearest and Father Cowardice</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/NecklaceOfDiamondsAndPearls/pseuds/NecklaceOfDiamondsAndPearls'>NecklaceOfDiamondsAndPearls</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Rick and Morty</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>BAMF Summer, Death Threats, Established Relationship, M/M, Protective Summer, Summer centric, Suspected Rape, Suspected molestation, Victim Blaming</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 06:40:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,478</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26538382</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/NecklaceOfDiamondsAndPearls/pseuds/NecklaceOfDiamondsAndPearls</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>"How long have you been fucking my brother?" She hissed...</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Shocked into stillness, Rick only stared at her...</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"I have no idea what you're talking about."</i>
</p>
<p>Every member of the Smith family knows what's going on. That doesn't mean they all agree with it.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Rick Sanchez/Morty Smith</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>193</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Mother Dearest and Father Cowardice</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>
  <b>
    <i>PLEASE READ:</i>
  </b>
</p>
<p>While there is suspected rape and molestation of an underage character, there is <i>not</i> anything of the sort actually happening. The relationship between Rick and Morty is completely consensual, if inappropriate, and the dysfunction is between the other three members of the Smith family. But please be mindful of the tags and read with caution ^-^</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Summer Smith was well aware her parents weren't <i>the best</i>. Her mother was an emotionally stunted alcoholic with abandonment issues galore; broken down by the cruelties of being a teen mom, and just the general pains of existence. Her father… God… to say he was just stupid would be a gross understatement. Not only was he the dullest knife in the kitchen drawer, he was <i>arrogant</i> about it. Maybe it was something about the constant sci-fi bullshit traipsing through the Smith household, but Summer's father took <i>pride</i> in being a just-below-average simpleton. Obsessed with the idea of a nuclear family, but so far from his ideal he’d rather just pretend that isn’t the case. The coward’s approach to life. Ignorance must really be bliss.</p>
<p>Oh yes, Summer Smith was well aware her parents weren’t <i>the best</i>. But she was confident that on some primal level, the base instinct of an animal protecting its young, that her parents cared for her and Morty.</p>
<p>That confidence was shattered today.</p>
<p>It was almost four thirty in the afternoon. School had been out for an hour and according to the rumor mill, Brad and Jessica were on the outs again. Summer saw this as her opportunity to snag him, and as the student body dispersed Summer stopped Brad at her locker with intent to flirt him into boyfriend status. Unfortunately so did some other girl that Summer vaguely recognized from her history class, and that bitch completely horned in on her conversation with Brad. The fight that followed only left Summer with her hair mussed, a ripped strap from her favorite pink tank top, and a sore shoulder decorated with scratches and bruises. </p>
<p>She sulked her way into the Smith house and closed the front door, a lie about trying to help a stray cat on her lips, only to snap her mouth shut at the sound of her parents harsh voices from the living room</p>
<p>“-and besides, Jerry... What can we do? Rick topples governments <i>for fun</i>. Do you really think he’ll listen to us about leaving? Or if he’d care about us threatening to call the cops?”</p>
<p>“I know he wouldn’t care, Beth. But shouldn’t we at least try to do something? This is wrong! Morty is fourteen! And-”</p>
<p>“What, Jerry? ‘And’ what? Make him run away to another dimension where he’d probably just end up having sex with <i>another</i> version of his underage grandson? Do you really want to put more than one Morty through that?”</p>
<p>“Who cares about Morties in other dimensions? What about the Morty <i>here</i>? He’s our son.”</p>
<p>“And Rick is my dad! I don’t want to lose him again.”</p>
<p>Silence then, only punctuating the shrillness of Beth’s voice. Summer couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move. More than one Morty… that couldn’t mean… they couldn’t <i>possibly</i> be talking about…</p>
<p>“So that’s what this is about? You’re so desperate to keep your dad around that you’d let Morty continue to be molested and raped just to have Rick here?”</p>
<p>“Oh, don’t fucking high-road me, Jerry. Morty still goes out for ice cream with him. They laugh and play board games together! Morty is constantly trying to spend time in the garage on the <i>rare</i> occasion that they aren’t out on an adventure. Does that sound like something a victim of sexual assault would do? Just <i>hang out</i> with their abuser?”</p>
<p>Another wave of silence, but Jerry must have opened his mouth to say something, only to be interrupted.</p>
<p>“Look… I know this is wrong, Jerry. Morally and legally, but Morty seems to be... okay… with what’s happening to him. Unless we notice that changing, can’t we just… leave things alone? I can’t lose my dad again. I don’t know if I’ll be able to handle it.”</p>
<p>At some point in Beth’s sickening compromise, Summer heard her mother start to cry. The grape-sized knot of rage Summer felt in the pit of her stomach grew to the size of a pumpkin as she heard Jerry, that weak fucking coward, sigh in defeat and begin to console his weeping wife.</p>
<p>Summer knew that her father was saying something. Words of encouragement, of agreement, but she couldn’t hear exactly what he was saying over the buzzing of anger in her ears. Morty was getting touched by Rick. Her brother and grandpa. And even worse than that, her parents <i>knew</i>.</p>
<p>Worst of all… her parents actively chose to do nothing about it.</p>
<p>As Jerry gently guided a hysterical Beth past Summer and upstairs to their room, the teen was comforted for the first time in her life by the fact that her parents didn’t pay attention. If they had stopped to talk to her now, she wasn’t sure what she would have done.</p>
<p>The unmistakable sound of metal sliding against concrete signaled the arrival of Rick's ship. Summer didn't remember seeing Morty at school today, and the realization that Morty had gone on an… <i>adventure</i> made her see red. </p>
<p>Suddenly, Summer found the will to move. Without thinking she stormed through the kitchen and flung open the back door leading to the garage. Morty's smiling face greeted her as the young boy stumbled out of the ship's passenger side, giggling and goading their grandfather about getting the high score on some game.</p>
<p>Summer found herself frozen again, only able to stare as Rick made his way from the driver's side and pulled Morty into a noogie. How could he do that? How could he just pretend that he wasn't ruining Morty's life? How could her parents not care? </p>
<p>Why couldn't she stop shaking?</p>
<p>Over the thunder of her own heartbeat, Summer could just barely hear Morty stutter out his concern for her appearance. Questioning how she got hurt and was she okay.</p>
<p>Was she hurt? Why was she a mess? What the fuck happened before she came home and only felt fury?</p>
<p>"Morty," she started slowly, "Go to your room."</p>
<p>"Jeez, w-w-what are you, Summer?" He laughed nervously. "My mom?"</p>
<p>
  <i>No, you little prick! I'm better than that.</i>
</p>
<p>"Morty, go to your room now before I throw you up there!"</p>
<p>Taken aback by the tone of her voice and the scowl on her face, Morty looked to Rick for guidance. It made her want to puke.</p>
<p>After a nod of approval from their elder, Morty scampered out of the garage. Summer waited for the dull thump of his sneakers on hardwood to get softer before she slammed the garage door and stared her grandfather down.</p>
<p>"Y-you know, Sum-Sum… I don't know what happened to you today, but you don't have to- you shouldn't take it out on Morty. Just l-let grandpa fix your shoulder and then you can go apologize to him."</p>
<p>Summer exploded with the force of a dying star.</p>
<p>Pain in her shoulder forgotten, she screamed before lunging at the elder. She felt her fist connect with Rick's jaw hard enough to hurt her own knuckles; happy to see the old man's surprise make him stumble back against his worktable. She took advantage of the opening to grip Rick's coat lapel and strike her free hand against his chest. </p>
<p>"How long? How long!"</p>
<p>"Jesus christ, what the hell, Summer! Y-you psycho-bitch! How long <i>what</i>?" Rick flailed, catching Summer's wrists in his hands and squeezing, causing her bones to scrape together.</p>
<p>"How long have you been fucking my brother?" She hissed, ignoring the fire in her wrists and continued to lash at Rick.</p>
<p>Shocked into stillness, Rick only stared at her; his expression somewhere between anger, surprise, and worry.</p>
<p>As Summer stared back, she watched his face fall into calculated blankness.</p>
<p>"I have no idea what you're talking about."</p>
<p>Growling, Summer redoubled her efforts to hit him. Yanking her wrists free with force that burned her skin, she reached out to wrap her hands around Rick's throat. Rick retaliated with a stinging grip on her abused shoulder, causing her to scream and lose balance. Rick braced a hand on her sternum and pushed her away, his entire weight behind his arm. But not before Summer's hand reached into one of his countless coat pockets and pulled out a device. She hoped it was a gun.</p>
<p>As she stumbled away from her grandfather and pointed the device at his head, she saw that it was a plasma pistol.</p>
<p>Close enough.</p>
<p>They watched each other for a moment. Rick's hands raised in surrender, and Summer aiming the pistol with a calmness she couldn't actually feel. It was like they were really <i>seeing</i> each other for the first time.</p>
<p>That strange look returned to Rick's ancient face, and Summer felt tears that she didn't know she was holding back fall from her eyes.</p>
<p>"It wasn't enough you had to keep him from school. From making friends… from just a full night of fucking sleep. But you had to take this from him too?"</p>
<p>Rick opened his mouth, but Summer couldn't handle anymore bullshit excuses today.</p>
<p>She cocked the pistol.</p>
<p>"Don't fucking lie to me, Rick! I heard mom and dad talking about it. They know! And they may be too weak to do anything about it, but I'm not!"</p>
<p>Calculated blankness returned. "Why do you care, Summer? That's not even your original brother!"</p>
<p>"That's not the point, you old bastard! My original brother, a <i>version</i> of my brother. He's still <i>my</i> brother! Just…" Summer felt the lump of rage she had been carrying in her stomach move to rest on her shoulders. Crushing her head from the weight of a universe too gigantic to carry on her simple and frail human form. "Just tell me why? Why him? With everything you can do. Everywhere you could go, or everyone you could meet… why Morty?"</p>
<p>"Because I love him."</p>
<p>"Love?" She spat. "Really? Ye of little emotion? What the fuck do you know about love?"</p>
<p>Rick's brow furrowed as he lowered his hands, "More than your teenaged, hormone-riddled brain. That's for sure."</p>
<p>"Oh yeah?" Summer surged forward, pressing the barrel of the pistol to Rick's forehead. "At least I know that when you love someone, you don't fucking hurt them! Let's forget about the kiddie diddling for a second and think back to all the other shit. How often has Morty gotten injured on an adventure? Stumbled into a trap right behind your ass? How many times have you held a knife to his throat while you were too drunk to know if you cut him or not? What the <i>fuck</i> makes you think you could love him, when you can't even care for yourself?"</p>
<p>Rick's cerulean gaze hardening to glass was Summer's only warning before Rick grabbed her wrist again. He twisted outward, causing her grip on the pistol to slacken and send the weapon clattering to the floor. But he kept twisting. Summer doubled over in pain as her arm was bent at an unnatural angle, Rick pulling her closer and towering over her.</p>
<p>"You're right Summer. I'm an absolute piece of shit. And the reasons why I am the way I am are too convoluted for a fucking fanfiction writer to tackle in a one-shot. But don't ever fucking question how I feel about Morty. Got it? I'd sooner throw you, your mom, and fucking Jerry into the maw of Geckiscio Beetle myself before risk Morty getting hurt beyond repair."</p>
<p>Letting go of Summer's arm and shoving her to the floor, Rick let out a mirthless chuckle.</p>
<p>"N-not that I think it will matter to you- or that you'd even believe it- but did you know <i>Morty</i> came onto <i>me</i>? And that I've known that your parents have known about us for a-at least a damn month?"</p>
<p>At Summer's look of horror, Rick barked out an actual laugh. "Thought not. Oh sure, Jerry walks in on Morty begging me to pound his little ass into his mattress, and the first thing Jerry does is go to your <i>mom</i>? Jeez, I would have respected him more if he went to the fucking cops. And d-don't even get me started on Beth… I-I-I knew I was a terrible father, but hell… I didn't think I taught her to sell out her son's innocence just to let me stay."</p>
<p>Rick's smirk dropped into a tired grimace as his body dropped to its knees to be at eye level with Summer, a heavy sigh escaping his lips and wafting the smell of vodka over Summer's nose. "As someone with a planetary mindset, I don't expect you to accept this. A-and I don't expect you to trust me ever again. If you ever trusted me at all." </p>
<p>Reaching into his coat pocket, Rick pulled out what looked to be a simple band-aid. But when he stuck it to Summer's shoulder, the scratches and bruises she'd gotten from that petty school-girl fight disappeared. With a satisfied look at his handiwork, Rick got up with a grunt and a pop of his knee before heading to the garage door.</p>
<p>Summer's voice stopped him before he could reach the doorknob.</p>
<p>"So that's it? You're not gonna stop this? Tell Morty he's too young? Anything? You're just going to continue like nothing happened?"</p>
<p>"Ugh, Summer… why would I do that? Morty's happy. <i>I'm</i> happy. Your parents obviously plan to do what they've always done and pretend they're happy. What do you want done?"</p>
<p>Summer thought about it. And she was disgusted to find herself coming to the same conclusion her parents did. Nothing <i>could</i> be done. Rick was the smartest man in the universe. In <i>every</i> universe. He'd easily escape CPS or the police. If the family told him to leave, he'd find a way to take Morty with him. Summer was sure even if she had shot him, he'd find a way to resurrect himself.</p>
<p>And that's when it clicked.</p>
<p>Summer, Beth, and Jerry might have all came to the same conclusion; but the difference was Summer refused to be apathetic.</p>
<p>Picking up the plasma pistol, she stood and pocketed it before turning to look her grandpa in the eye.</p>
<p>"Do whatever you want, Rick. It's not like my <i>planetary mindset</i> can stop you. Just know that if you ever <i>do</i> hurt my brother beyond repair, I won't lose my weapon again. I'll kill you. And then I'll make it my mission to kill every Rick in existence, even if I've got to build my own portal gun to do it."</p>
<p>Rick held her gaze for a moment before conceding with a roguish smile. "I'll hold you to that, Sum-Sum. If anyone other than Morty can put a Rick in their place, it's you. Thanks for having his back. No matter the dimension."</p>
<p>As the old man swept his way out of the garage, Summer wiped the tacky remains of old tears from her face.</p>
<p>Summer Smith was well aware her parents weren't <i>the best</i>. But that's okay. She was better.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Oof, I think this is the angsty-est thing I've ever written o_o If you've made it this far, thank you so much for reading!! Any criticism/correction of spelling or grammatical errors is greatly appreciated! If you'd like to geek out over this show with me, please feel free to check out my <a href="https://necklace-of-sin.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a>!</p></blockquote><div class="children module" id="children">
  <b class="heading">Works inspired by this one:</b>
  <ul>
    <li>
        <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28230801">[Podfic] Mother Dearest Father Cowardice</a> by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/futagogo/pseuds/futagogo">futagogo</a>
    </li>
  </ul>
</div></div></div>
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